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host: "politioco" -- "polit ico" reports that a fiscal cliff deal is emerging. guest: i guess i am not sure what they were reporting. they're so many ideas out there. one of the reasons people think it will not happen until the last two weeks is because all these ideas have been developed. we know how much money they raised. is just a matter of negotiation. aides and thea's speaker boehner getting together and making a decision about it. host: we will continue this discussion next. coming up, a round table with william mcbride and seth hanlon. you can continue to collins. we believe the numbers and. we believe -- continue to call in. we will leave the lines open. we want to say thank you to cam dixon -- kim dixon of "reuters ." >> numbers in this hour show that the new jobless claims fell for a second week in a row. this after hurricane co sandy drove applications higher in the month. reports that the u.s. economy has been growing at a faster rate than had been estimated earlier. 2.7% annual rate from july through september. economists believe growth is slowing
host: "politioco" -- "polit ico" reports that a fiscal cliff deal is emerging. guest: i guess i am not sure what they were reporting. they're so many ideas out there. one of the reasons people think it will not happen until the last two weeks is because all these ideas have been developed. we know how much money they raised. is just a matter of negotiation. aides and thea's speaker boehner getting together and making a decision about it. host: we will continue this...
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republicans want to avert the fiscal cliff in its entirety. what we need is the president to come forward with a plan on how he wants to avert the fiscal cliff. it is irresponsible of us not to deal with the spending issue and simply to push for raising taxes on hard-working american people. many of us come from small- business backgrounds -- family owned businesses. we understand the situation very well. but it is important we not pass this problem along to our children and grandchildren, but we deal with it in a responsible way. the republicans have come forward with a responsible plan and will continue to do that and look for ways to keep us from going over this fiscal cliff. >> we have time for a couple questions before we go to our meeting. >> your colleague has told other colleagues that it is time to vote to extend the middle- class tax cut -- i want to get your take on his comments. more importantly, is this the direction the conference is going? >> i told tom earlier that i disagree with him. he is a wonderful friend and a great suppo
republicans want to avert the fiscal cliff in its entirety. what we need is the president to come forward with a plan on how he wants to avert the fiscal cliff. it is irresponsible of us not to deal with the spending issue and simply to push for raising taxes on hard-working american people. many of us come from small- business backgrounds -- family owned businesses. we understand the situation very well. but it is important we not pass this problem along to our children and grandchildren, but...
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Dec 5, 2012
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do they cut a deal to avoid the fiscal cliff before we actually get there? >> i believe so. >> senator? >> yes. the treasury secretary says withholding taxes and does not have to raise them even if the taxes go up. why sequester does not have to be month by month. you can do the sequester in the last 12 months. he gives the congress four or five months into the next year before the house to reach a deal. -- before they have to reach a deal. >> they could kick the can down the road. who thinks the market will not let them do that? there will be punished. sooner rather than later, you think? we have not seen it so far. >> i am in the camp of, the herd will turn. erskine bowles has a famous line. we got away with this last time because we were the best- looking horse in the glue factory. we are not going to get a pass this time. there is no question. who will get punished. and that is very dangerous for everyone, all of us. >> it is great for me to remind you -- you can watch the president on bloomberg television shortly. thank you all for a lively discussion.
do they cut a deal to avoid the fiscal cliff before we actually get there? >> i believe so. >> senator? >> yes. the treasury secretary says withholding taxes and does not have to raise them even if the taxes go up. why sequester does not have to be month by month. you can do the sequester in the last 12 months. he gives the congress four or five months into the next year before the house to reach a deal. -- before they have to reach a deal. >> they could kick the can...
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cliff and put it in place a comprehensive debt deal to deal with our country's fiscal challenges. the message they bought was we do not want you to go off the cliff. we do not want to bet the country. we want you to fix the country. we had a number of productive meetings in the past couple of days at the white house and leadership with the house and senate. and the first of house and senate members. we have come back pleased that we have been able to deliver the message of how the are so many people with different backgrounds and political points of view and life experiences who believe this is a critical moment for the country and a test for the country. but we are asking the members of congress to do is come together and take on these challenges, work together and put in place a plan for the good of the country. it is not about special interests. it is about public interest. this is a message dated first group of folks -- a diverse group of folks can deliver. on the campaign to fix the debt, i am so thrilled with what has happened in the past couple of months where what was an i
cliff and put it in place a comprehensive debt deal to deal with our country's fiscal challenges. the message they bought was we do not want you to go off the cliff. we do not want to bet the country. we want you to fix the country. we had a number of productive meetings in the past couple of days at the white house and leadership with the house and senate. and the first of house and senate members. we have come back pleased that we have been able to deliver the message of how the are so many...
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Dec 4, 2012
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with the fiscal cliff dealing with the issue of social security and medicare. social security, no, not part of this problem. something we'll deal with perhaps in the next congress or even in the one beyond that because we do have time to deal with social security. medicare, for those who want to privatize medicare, end it as we know it with a voucher or premium support program, no, no how are we going to go there. for those who want to work on changing the way in which medicare operates, to get saving such as drug -- negotiating drug prices, dealing with fraud and abuse, the various payment systems that are in medicare, all of which can save money and to continue, continue the work of the affordable health care act in the way it has already brought the inflation rate from the 4% to 5% down to the 2%, 2.5% range, this is an extraordinary savings right here and that will be calculated in the years ahead. this will add up to tens -- frankly, this will add up to hundreds of billions of dollars in the reduction in the projected cost of medicare in the years ahead. s
with the fiscal cliff dealing with the issue of social security and medicare. social security, no, not part of this problem. something we'll deal with perhaps in the next congress or even in the one beyond that because we do have time to deal with social security. medicare, for those who want to privatize medicare, end it as we know it with a voucher or premium support program, no, no how are we going to go there. for those who want to work on changing the way in which medicare operates, to get...
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what we need to be more focused on is to get through the fiscal cliff and get a deal done and lay the foundation for long-term fiscal reform. it is focused primarily on health care. >> senator, can you wait in on this? cbo, 10-year window, this is a requirement. congress needs to address these things. a roadmap, if you will. should we change the rules before we play the game? >> all of these extraordinary and practical ideas cannot survive in the cbo structure. that is a forcing mechanism. people are grasping onto ideas such as changing the age. people can easily explain it i and understand it instead of doing the more complex and difficult things that would get you where you want to go. i would be interested -- i have always opposed -- >> i did not hear that. >> directive scoring when it comes to cbo. i do think somehow and i think this is the governor's point, which is congress ignores a lot of stuff that makes sense. it gets wrapped up in its day- to-day activities. i honestly think you break out of this is if you get a white house and leadership in congress that are willing to tak
what we need to be more focused on is to get through the fiscal cliff and get a deal done and lay the foundation for long-term fiscal reform. it is focused primarily on health care. >> senator, can you wait in on this? cbo, 10-year window, this is a requirement. congress needs to address these things. a roadmap, if you will. should we change the rules before we play the game? >> all of these extraordinary and practical ideas cannot survive in the cbo structure. that is a forcing...
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do they cut a deal, congressmen? to avoid the fiscal cliff before we actually get there? >> i believe so. >> senator? >> yes, as long as you realize that the treasury secretary sets withholding taxes, he doesn't have to raise it even if the taxes go up and the sequester doesn't have to happen month by month. you can do the sequester in the last month of 12 months if you want. so it gives the congress anotherality or nine -- probably four or five month the next year before they have to reach a deal. >> you're thinking they could kick the can down the road but who thinks the market's not going to let them do that? they'll be punished. >> they'll be hugely punished. >> sooner rather than later? >> immediately. >> we haven't seen it so far. >> >> the herd will turn. erskine's got a very famous line that says, we got away with it last time because we had the best-looking horse in the glue factory or whatever he says. we're not going to get it passed this time. >> we're not going to get it passed. no. >> the president doesn't want a deal. >> we will get punished. and that is ve
do they cut a deal, congressmen? to avoid the fiscal cliff before we actually get there? >> i believe so. >> senator? >> yes, as long as you realize that the treasury secretary sets withholding taxes, he doesn't have to raise it even if the taxes go up and the sequester doesn't have to happen month by month. you can do the sequester in the last month of 12 months if you want. so it gives the congress anotherality or nine -- probably four or five month the next year before they...
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it is possible we pass the fiscal cliff with a good deal, and folks like goldman sachs and lloyd blankfein say the economy will takeoff, and if that is the case people will leave benefits because they have a job. host: if this is not addressed in the fiscal cliff debate, will it come up in the debt ceiling debate? guest: all of this depends on how the fiscal cliff sorts itself out. yesterday, you have senators say we want on income benefits extended. if the fiscal cliff debate is only limited to tax rates and deficit reduction, and not the debt ceiling, this will come up again. president obama once the debt ceiling to be part of this agreement. the reason why is simple, because that is where republicans have leverage in february. he needs republicans to extend the debt ceiling for the government to function with all going into default. republicans know this, and in theory they could separate the two to maximize their leverage. host: time for a couple more calls in this segment of the "washington journal," we will continue the unemployment insurance discussion in the following segment. laur
it is possible we pass the fiscal cliff with a good deal, and folks like goldman sachs and lloyd blankfein say the economy will takeoff, and if that is the case people will leave benefits because they have a job. host: if this is not addressed in the fiscal cliff debate, will it come up in the debt ceiling debate? guest: all of this depends on how the fiscal cliff sorts itself out. yesterday, you have senators say we want on income benefits extended. if the fiscal cliff debate is only limited...
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with the fiscal cliff. the house will not adjourn until an agreement is reached on preventing spending cuts and tax increases scheduled to take effect on january. on washington journal" we have been looking elements of the so- called fiscal cliff -- a discussion of the expiring tax provisions set to hit january 1. host: we have been focusing on different parts of the fiscal cliff discussion. today we're looking at tax extenders for businesses and individuals. joining us is sam goldfarb, a tax writer for cq roll call. what our tax extenders? guest: they are temporary tax breaks. some people are concerned the entire tax code is turning into a big tax extender. they are considered to be a small provision and targeted at specific types of businesses. host: why are they temporary? guest: a lot of people say they should be made permanent or they should be eliminated altogether. it is easier to pass when they are temporary. they keep on being extended and extended. host: we will look at some of these. these are so
with the fiscal cliff. the house will not adjourn until an agreement is reached on preventing spending cuts and tax increases scheduled to take effect on january. on washington journal" we have been looking elements of the so- called fiscal cliff -- a discussion of the expiring tax provisions set to hit january 1. host: we have been focusing on different parts of the fiscal cliff discussion. today we're looking at tax extenders for businesses and individuals. joining us is sam goldfarb, a...
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the fiscal cliff has come about because of happenstance. we have a series of events that were designed to happen. we have other things that are going to happen that are not necessarily intended. debt going to hit the ceiling again very shortly after the first of the year. that is something at happens when it happens. host: one piece you alluded to with entitlements is the simpson-bowles would raise the social security retirement age. explain where it would go. guest: it would raise the retirement age. right now it is scheduled to go up to 67. that was a deal reached in the 1980's to keep social security solvent. we are living longer. or social security was first created, the retirement age was 65. life expectancy was 64. now we're talking life expectancy of around 80. what this does is raising up and indexes s list. in 2075, the benefits will start being paid out. when you're 69, there are 67. like expectancy will grow at a faster rate. some argue this is still a cut because it is changing from current law. others argue it is not a change.
the fiscal cliff has come about because of happenstance. we have a series of events that were designed to happen. we have other things that are going to happen that are not necessarily intended. debt going to hit the ceiling again very shortly after the first of the year. that is something at happens when it happens. host: one piece you alluded to with entitlements is the simpson-bowles would raise the social security retirement age. explain where it would go. guest: it would raise the...
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with the so- called fiscal cliff. he says the house will not the interim until an agreement is reached a preventing tax increases and spending cuts scheduled to take effect in did worry. live coverage as always on c- span. and john boehner are just spoke to reporters on capitol hill, on the so-called fiscal cliff negotiations and the economy, including this morning's release on the november jobs numbers. here are his comments. >> good morning, everyone. this is not a progress report, because there is no progress to report. when it comes to the fiscal cliff threatening the economy and jobs, the white house has wasted another week. eight days ago the treasury secretary came here to offer a plan that had twice the planned tax hikes the president campaigned on. more stimulus spending than the added cuts, and did and didn't but net -- in definite increase on the debt limit. four days ago we offered a serious proposal based on testimony of president clinton's former chief of staff. since then there has been no counter offer
with the so- called fiscal cliff. he says the house will not the interim until an agreement is reached a preventing tax increases and spending cuts scheduled to take effect in did worry. live coverage as always on c- span. and john boehner are just spoke to reporters on capitol hill, on the so-called fiscal cliff negotiations and the economy, including this morning's release on the november jobs numbers. here are his comments. >> good morning, everyone. this is not a progress report,...
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the fiscal cliff? and you think that just the promise of spending cuts have to be included at this level and at this time? >> it is not productive for either side to lay out hard lines as for what size the spending cuts ought to be. there are a lot of options on how you can get there. but the second part of your question was? >> my question is do you think the promise of spending cuts has to be included in the deal that averts the fiscal cliff? >> there is a free-market we presented to the white house two weeks ago. the framework has been agreed to in terms of a down payment for the end of this year. that would include spending cuts and it would include revenue. setting up a process for entitlement reform next year and tax reform next year. but this is way out of bounds. and not a recognition by the part of the white house on the serious spending problem we have. >> facing the prospect of going over the fiscal cliff or extending the lower tax rate and at the upper one, which would you choose? >> i will
the fiscal cliff? and you think that just the promise of spending cuts have to be included at this level and at this time? >> it is not productive for either side to lay out hard lines as for what size the spending cuts ought to be. there are a lot of options on how you can get there. but the second part of your question was? >> my question is do you think the promise of spending cuts has to be included in the deal that averts the fiscal cliff? >> there is a free-market we...
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there are two ways to deal with that -- build another fiscal cliff to put on pressure, which puts us right back where we are, or have a default mechanism which has policy set aside that both sides do not like. one thing about the baseline -- under current law, if the congress packed its bags right now and went away, at the end of the 10-year period our debt to gdp ratio would be under 1%. he would definitely solve the deficit problem. >> under 1%? >> i believe. >> the percentage of your debt -- not the deficit to gdp? >> deficit to gdp. now, we do not want to get there that way. the same way we do not want to go over the fiscal class. the fiscal cliff is big austerity -- you get $seven trillion in deficit reduction over 10 years. but you do not do it you really want to do it. when it comes to the baseline, you have to work together as part of an agreement to get to the right baseline. that does not mean it is not real world deficit-reduction. it is. does it mean it is better than current law? maybe not. but there is agreement that current law, including the fiscal cliff, is not the b
there are two ways to deal with that -- build another fiscal cliff to put on pressure, which puts us right back where we are, or have a default mechanism which has policy set aside that both sides do not like. one thing about the baseline -- under current law, if the congress packed its bags right now and went away, at the end of the 10-year period our debt to gdp ratio would be under 1%. he would definitely solve the deficit problem. >> under 1%? >> i believe. >> the...
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people are talking about the fiscal cliff on january 1. let's give businesses the service. their employees can pass the middle income tax cut now. >> i would like to add that basarah were sar participants in the discussion. when they went to the table as representatives of the house democrats, the next -- no instructions except to reach an agreement. the overriding value was to get the jobs done for the american people. the only thing i said i wanted to say was jobs and economic growth would be the centerpiece of the discussion. whatever decisions we would unmake as far as cuts and revenue or raising them with center around how we create jobs. that is how we will reduce the deficit by creating jobs. every time we came to the idea of bold balance, the rivet a question was the hurdle and it is still does. we cannot get there from here in terms of deficit reduction. you can grow your way he to there, but you have to have the revenue as a confidence-building that we are responsible. we will get the job done. he had ended their meeting to go to so he is not here with us now. why
people are talking about the fiscal cliff on january 1. let's give businesses the service. their employees can pass the middle income tax cut now. >> i would like to add that basarah were sar participants in the discussion. when they went to the table as representatives of the house democrats, the next -- no instructions except to reach an agreement. the overriding value was to get the jobs done for the american people. the only thing i said i wanted to say was jobs and economic growth...
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oklahoma congressman tom cole discusses the fiscal cliff negotiations and agrees with suggestions they should join president obama to extend the tax rates for the highest income earners the law professor john buckley looks at the history of the tax, plus your e-mails, phone calls, and tweets. in a few moments, a forum on energy security. in a little less than an hour and a half, 20 years since russia and the u.s. agreed to secure and nuclear weapons in the former soviet states, and a look at proposals but could be negotiations over the fiscal cliff. >> we are at the new york state museum. this is dedicated to the history of september 11 and the attacks at the world trade center. we have established the gallery to tell the story of the first moments of the attack using photographs from the world trade center site. there is a piece of steel. we put it in a place where the public can come and touch it. it gives a tangible experience. this is a piece of steel from the north towers. this is a dramatically bent piece of steel. this is within 10 floors of the impact, and you can see the openi
oklahoma congressman tom cole discusses the fiscal cliff negotiations and agrees with suggestions they should join president obama to extend the tax rates for the highest income earners the law professor john buckley looks at the history of the tax, plus your e-mails, phone calls, and tweets. in a few moments, a forum on energy security. in a little less than an hour and a half, 20 years since russia and the u.s. agreed to secure and nuclear weapons in the former soviet states, and a look at...
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of the fiscal cliff. that would take $900 billion off the cliff right now. so, folks, just look around here. people are consumer confidence is growing. the last thing we need to do is dash that now by being unable to extend the middle class tax cuts. thanks for shopping with me. i know you won't tell anybody what i bought for christmas. thank you very much. [applause] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2012] >> vice president joe biden at the new and the first costco in washington which employs some 200 people. he was joined there by the c.e.o. of costco, who also spoke at the democratic national convention. was a major obama fundraiser. we are live back on capitol hill waiting to hear from house speaker john boehner and his weekly briefing. the speaker today was one of the leaders set to meet with treasury secretary tim geithner up on capitol hill today to talk about the fiscal cliff negotiation. we'll be hearing from the speaker sho
of the fiscal cliff. that would take $900 billion off the cliff right now. so, folks, just look around here. people are consumer confidence is growing. the last thing we need to do is dash that now by being unable to extend the middle class tax cuts. thanks for shopping with me. i know you won't tell anybody what i bought for christmas. thank you very much. [applause] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2012] >> vice...
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with the so called fiscal cliff. the house will not asuren until an agreement is reached. when the house is back in session live coverage as always on c-span. a report out of the labor department show that is 146,000 jobs were added in november and the unemployment rate falling to 7.7%, the lowest since december 2008. there had been concern that is hurricane sandy could afblingt the numbers bit only had a minimal effect. employers added fewers jobs in october and september than initially estimate pped and the unemployment rate fell mostly because more people stopped looking for work. earlier today on capitol hill john boehner commented on the fiscal cliff negotiations with reporters. >> this isn't a progress report because there is no progress to report. when it comes to the fiscal cliff that is threatening our economy and jobs the white house has wastde another week. secretary gitener came here to offer a plan that had twice the tax hikes that the president campaigned on and had more stimulus spending thanned the in
with the so called fiscal cliff. the house will not asuren until an agreement is reached. when the house is back in session live coverage as always on c-span. a report out of the labor department show that is 146,000 jobs were added in november and the unemployment rate falling to 7.7%, the lowest since december 2008. there had been concern that is hurricane sandy could afblingt the numbers bit only had a minimal effect. employers added fewers jobs in october and september than initially...
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unfortunately five years later as we deal with the looming fiscal cliff, some in the president's own party are denying the fiscal reality when it comes to social security. here are the facts -- social security is the government's most expensive program. since 2010 it's been bleeding cash, and over the next 10 years it will do so to the tune of nearly $1 trillion. as recent "usa today" editorial put it, social security is indeed contributing to our deficit. to say otherwise is to lie to the american people. mr. speaker, all americans want, need and deserve that we work together to address our fiscal challenges. we owe it to current and future beneficiaries to secure this critical safety net. we can make social security solvent forever. let's do it. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from georgia seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from georgia is recognized for one minute. >> thank you, mr. speaker. mr.
unfortunately five years later as we deal with the looming fiscal cliff, some in the president's own party are denying the fiscal reality when it comes to social security. here are the facts -- social security is the government's most expensive program. since 2010 it's been bleeding cash, and over the next 10 years it will do so to the tune of nearly $1 trillion. as recent "usa today" editorial put it, social security is indeed contributing to our deficit. to say otherwise is to lie...
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how to deal with them in a responsible way, get us passed this fiscal cliff, passed in august, only plan in washington, d.c., to prevent these debilitating tax increases from hitting across all of our family owned small businesses. finally, mr. speaker, h.r. 6365, it's the national security and job protection act. we passed that in september. that's the bill that looks specifically at these coming defense cuts. these cuts that secretary of defense leon panetta has called devastating in their impact. i know you do, mr. speaker, leon panetta, former chief of staff to president bill clinton, former chairman of the democratic-led budget committee here in the u.s. house of representatives, current secretary of defense calls these defense cuts devastating. this u.s. house has passed a proposal to prevent that second round of cuts from taking place. it's the only proposal anywhere in this town to have passed. we did in august. we took care of our business and we have yet to have partnership from either the white house or the senate. on that proposal. we took the sequester replacement reconcilia
how to deal with them in a responsible way, get us passed this fiscal cliff, passed in august, only plan in washington, d.c., to prevent these debilitating tax increases from hitting across all of our family owned small businesses. finally, mr. speaker, h.r. 6365, it's the national security and job protection act. we passed that in september. that's the bill that looks specifically at these coming defense cuts. these cuts that secretary of defense leon panetta has called devastating in their...
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blumenauer: there is a great deal of hyperactive rhetoric about the fiscal cliff and the trouble ahead. the fact is that people should just take a deep breath and focus on where we are and where we need to go. first of all, it's not a fiscal cliff but a slope. there are many opportunities for us in the weeks ahead to be able to change the unsustainable trajectory of america's financial future. there are many efforts already evident and people taking steps to try and cope with it. the president campaigned very explicitly on raising the top tax rates. it was something that was embraced by democrats running for the senate and virtually all of them running for the house. . the house increased in democratic numbers. there were more democrats added to the house and more americans voted for the president and his vision, for the senate democrats and for democrats in the house than my republican friends on the other side of the aisle. it's encouraging that the president has decided that he's no longer going to negotiate with himself. he's laid out his positions, and has encouraged a response. i
blumenauer: there is a great deal of hyperactive rhetoric about the fiscal cliff and the trouble ahead. the fact is that people should just take a deep breath and focus on where we are and where we need to go. first of all, it's not a fiscal cliff but a slope. there are many opportunities for us in the weeks ahead to be able to change the unsustainable trajectory of america's financial future. there are many efforts already evident and people taking steps to try and cope with it. the president...